


Hair Emergency

by cr8zymommy



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-15
Updated: 2014-05-15
Packaged: 2018-01-24 21:27:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,935
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1617665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cr8zymommy/pseuds/cr8zymommy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is a silly one-shot I wrote for a friend - not meant to be taken seriously! Garcia has a hair emergency and needs help. Who does she seek out? Reid, of course!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Hair Emergency

**Author's Note:**

> This was written in total FUN for a friend of mine—at her request. She likes the strangest stories lol but I write them for her and they make her happy. This time she demanded I post it, though, so all of you can be amused at her odd idea and my interpretation of it. Hope you at least smile. Keep in mind, this was meant to be a little piece just to make a person smile. That’s all. Don’t take it seriously.

The bullpen was full of its usual morning quiet; the only sound being the scratching of pencils or the clacking of keys or the rustling of papers. Maybe the sound of a cup as it was set back down onto a desk. It was the kind of quiet that Spencer enjoyed. But all of that was broken with the arrival of one Penelope Garcia squealing “Reid!” so loud that all eyes were drawn first to her and then to Dr. Reid.

Penelope was rushing toward him in heels that were so high he wondered how on earth she managed to move that fast in them. The rest of her, though, lacked the usual Penelope quirkiness that they all knew and loved. Her dress was bright blue, sure, and accentuated by a nice white sweater that buttoned just over her cleavage. A typical outfit for her. But there were no rings, no bracelets, no necklace and no wacky headgear. In fact, her hair was all bundled up inside a white scarf that wrapped around her head and hit the hair completely. She wore her usual black glasses, magnifying the fact that she wore no makeup and her eyes were wide.

“Garcia…” Spencer looked up, unsure of what to do but unable to be anything but concerned for the horrified look on her face.

She didn’t give him a chance to speak. When she reached him she grabbed his hands, trying to tug him out of the chair. “You have to help me!” she demanded hysterically.

Looking over at Derek and Emily for help, he slowly stood up. Not that he really had any choice with how hard she was tugging on him. Derek rose, walking over to put a hand on her shoulder. “Baby girl, what’s going on?”

To the immense surprise of everyone, Penelope smacked his hand away before taking Spencer’s hands in hers again. “You can’t help right now, Morgan. You can’t make this better. I need Reid!” She looked at the confused doctor and tried to tug him forward again. “You have to come help me!”

“Help you with what?” He asked. She was really starting to worry him now. “Garcia, calm down and tell me what’s going on.”

Tears sprang into her bright eyes and she stopped trying to yank him forward. “What’s going on?” she sniffled at him. “This! This is what’s going on!” With that exclamation, she reached up and grabbed her little turban-thing, pulling it off of her hair. All at once her hair tumbled free and Spencer felt his jaw drop.

The front of Penelope’s hair looked like it had been cut with kid scissors. The back was cut in some random spots and left longer in others. All in all, it looked like a kid had attacked her with scissors. He soon found out that that was exactly what had happened.

“I was watching a movie with Kevin and we were babysitting his cousins. I fell asleep and the kids were supposed to be in bed and Kevin wasn’t paying attention and they cut my _hair_!” She wailed out. The tears were free falling by now, leaving tracks down her cheeks. “I can’t look like this! I look like a freak!”

“Oh my God, PG.” Whispering the words, Emily walked over to inspect the blond locks. “I, oh wow.” Her face turned confused for a second. “Why does this involve Reid, though?”

Her question was ignored. Penelope was looking pleadingly at Spencer, her eyes begging him. “Please, Reid. I can’t go around looking like this! Please tell me it’s workable. I can’t do the super short look! I just can’t!”

With a deep breath, Spencer took control of his shock and stepped over to her. “I can’t make promises until I sit you down but I’ll see what I can do.” He told her solemnly. “Do you have the scissors?”

“I brought it all. Scissors, comb, the little drape thingy.”

“Garcia, you do realize that ‘drape thingy’ isn’t what it’s called?” He teased her with a roll of his eyes. “Come on; let’s take this to the restroom. Emily, Morgan, can you guys check which restroom is empty and help us claim one? It should only be for a bit, I promise.”

The two looked like they were about to ask questions but one look at Penelope’s tearstained face and they moved into action. Spencer took a deep breath and put his hand gently on Penelope’s arm. “It’ll be ok, Garcia. You’ll be your usual sparkly self soon enough. Come on, let’s go.”

They made their way to where the restrooms were. Emily and Derek stood outside the women’s restroom, blocking the door. “It’s clear in there.” Emily told them.

“Thanks.” Spencer said gratefully. “Do you think one of you would mind getting me a chair for her to sit on?”

It was Derek who took off for the chair, returning with it a moment later. While Emily held the door open, Derek wheeled the chair into the restroom and then patted it for Penelope to come sit down. The usually bubbly woman quietly went and sat down, putting her bag beside her. Spencer walked in as well, giving Emily a look. “Please make sure no one comes in. The last thing I need is to be found in the woman’s restroom. I’m sure Hotch would be displeased with this.”

While she chuckled, Spencer knelt down by Penelope’s bag. He knew the stuff he needed would be in there. Carefully he pulled the things out. First he put the ‘drape-thingy’ around her shoulders, protecting her neck and her clothes. Then he grabbed the comb and the scissors. “Morgan, would you help me here?” He asked his best friend. At Derek’s curious look, Spencer smiled. “I just need you to wet down the comb for me occasionally or hold one or the other while I switch.”

“No problem.” Derek grinned and shook his head before moving to stand between Spencer and the sink. “I didn’t know you knew how to cut hair, pretty boy.”

Spencer answered almost absentmindedly. “My mom was too paranoid to take to a hairdresser or to trust someone in our house with scissors to her head. I learned by trial and error how to cut her hair. If it got too long it was too hard for me to wash or brush it.”

“You washed and brushed your Mom’s hair?” Emily’s voice held sympathy that Spencer would have cringed at if he had been paying attention. But his focus was on Penelope’s hair and so he didn’t notice her tone. “A couple times a week. She didn’t always remember to bathe, so I helped her when she wasn’t in her right mind to do it.” He finally stepped around, squatting in front of Penelope. “Ok, I think I know what to do. You’ll love it when I’m done, I promise. Now, what do you want to hear today?”

“The same as last time.”

He smiled and nodded before rising again. Derek gave him a funny look, which had Spencer wanting to blush. “What?” He asked, starting to comb through Penelope’s locks.

“What do you mean, what does she want to hear?”

“Oh, that.” This time Spencer did blush. “When I cut my mom’s hair, I recited for her. It kept her calmer. So when I first started cutting Garcia’s, I recited. After the first time, I let her pick what she wants to hear. She said she likes it.”

“It’s nice.” Penelope told him softly. “I can close my eyes and hear a story. I end up forgetting I’m getting my hair cut.”

Emily leaned in, watching Spencer comb out the tangles. “The first time? How long you been cutting her hair?”

“He’s been doing it since six months after we became friends. Now, hush, so I can hear!” Penelope chided them. It almost sounded like her normal self and it made them smile.

Spencer mentally perused the book she wanted. Not one of his personal favorites, not by a long shot, but she enjoyed it. The story itself was a classic and it did hold some merit.  In a soft voice he picked up on chapter four of Where the Red Fern Grows as he started to fix the damage.

His words spun a web over the room for him, just as it always did. As he recited the words he knew by heart, he tried to repair as much as he could to Penelope’s hair. He handed Derek the scissors for a moment, combing through the area he had just worked on. His eyes never left her hair and his voice never stopped the gentle speech.

Taking the scissors back, Spencer shifted to the other side of her head, putting his back toward the door. Because of that he didn’t notice that Aaron and Dave had walked up, ready to ask what was going on only to be hushed by Emily and Derek. He didn’t notice how absorbed the two were in the story, or how the two older profilers stepped inside and leaned against the wall, also finding themselves drawn into the story. He didn’t even see JJ join, or hear Emily whisper what had happened to Penelope. His mind was lost in his actions and in the story.

He’d reached halfway through the next chapter by the time he was done with her hair. Stepping back, he took a look at her, nodding to show he was satisfied. His voice trailed off and he smiled at his friend while she opened her eyes. Spencer moved to the back of her chair, rolling her over toward the mirror. “There. What do you think?”

Somehow he’d managed to salvage her bangs; the only reason he had was because she’d kept them long for a while. Now they were even on her forehead, curling in slightly at the bottom. The rest of her hair he had layered out. “I had to layer you because of how high some of the cuts were. It’s a different look for you, I know, but I think it really suits your face. You’ll still be able to use your headbands and clips and such. I know you like those.”

Penelope’s mouth was a little ‘o’ of surprise. She brought her hands up, running them through her hair. “Oh, Reid! It looks wonderful. Thank you so much!” She lifted her eyes to meet his in the mirror. “I’d hug you but I’d cover you in hair.” Her usual grin was back, bright and cheerful as always. “You’re such a lifesaver.”

“Anytime, Garcia.”

Another voice interrupted, reminding them that they weren’t alone. “You are so hired for my next haircut, Reid.” Emily said seriously. When he flushed, JJ laughed, making him finally notice that the rest of the team was in the room too. “He always does my hair.” JJ told the room. “Isn’t he great?”

“You did a great job, Reid.” Dave told him. Beside him, Aaron nodded. “I agree. But I have one question about this.” The unit chief looked at him sternly, making Spencer chew on his lip. “Yes, sir?”

“For those who don’t need a haircut, how do we get to hear the rest of the story?”

The question surprised him. His eyebrows shot up and his mouth dropped open. “Ah…what?”

“That story. I’d like to be able to hear the rest of it. I was wondering if we could set up something, maybe on our flights, to listen to the rest of it.”

Eager eyes all landed on Spencer as he blushed brightly.


End file.
